Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Horror and Light

Kong-blogging, essay 13 of 15 blog entries on

Skull Island in King Kong (1933)

Part One, Kong as Horror Movie

Fay Wray as Ann Darrow in King Kong (1933).

King Kong (1933) is sometimes categorized as a horror movie and
I’m okay with that. It’s certainly got plenty of horror components:
monsters, human sacrifice, death and destruction, and the pace and look of a strange nightmare. I’d probably peg it as a fantasy or adventure-romance
first, but there’s no denying that it has strong horror credentials.

On occasion, King Kong takes the leap into no-holds-barred
horror. Continuing to restrict myself to the Skull Island portion, key horror scenes include:

Kong’s introduction: Ann Darrow is completely
vulnerable, tied to the sacrificial altar. The horror nature of the scene
mounts with the closing of the massive doors of the great wall, leaving Ann
alone in the dark. Composer Max Steiner masterfully silences the orchestra to allow the audience to hear Kong’s furtive approach and our first
experience of his mighty roar. He comes into view at a fairly
unthreatening distance but then the film cuts to an extreme close-up—a
subjective shot from Ann’s point of view. That’s when the real screaming
begins. This qualifies as horror.

Kong's first appearance.

Man in tree: One of the sailors attempts to
escape from a rampaging Brontosaurus by climbing a tree. The dinosaur
sees him and moves in for the kill. The film cuts to a remarkable shot
with the terrified man in full view and the Brontosaurus in close-up as the
dinosaur maneuvers into position to pluck the man off the tree. This
qualifies as horror.

Death in the chasm.

The chasm: In a losing confrontation with Kong, the sailors fall off a log that crosses a chasm. Originally there were giant bugs and lizards on the chasm floor to finish off the few survivors but this scene was removed before release, perhaps because it was too horrific. But even as things stand, the shrieking of the sailors and the strange way the men bounce and crumple as they hit chasm bottom is still unnerving. This qualifies as horror.

The Allosaurus battle: This is my favorite Skull Island scene.
Throughout the Kong-Allosaurus battle scene, the filmmakers keep positioning the camera to
keep Ann Darrow in the foreground, enabling us to share her perspective while emphasizing her proximity to the danger. In modern movies, it’s
usually assumed that the best way to show a first-person perspective is with a
hand-held camera showing us exactly what the character sees. I don’t
agree. For maximum identification, give me an over-the-shoulder shot that
captures the subjective view while adding a real feeling of vulnerability. The Allosaurus is introduced in the distance in just such a shot, as we watch over Ann Darrow’s shoulder as the monster enters the frame. That’s horror.

Ann Darrow sees the Allosaurus in the distance.

Claustrophobic view for Ann as the monsters
fight above her.

Then it gets even more intense when, midway through
the fight, Kong and the Allosaurus crash into the tree where Ann Darrow has
been placed. Once again, we get the over-the-shoulder shot but this time
we follow Ann down in rapid descent as the tree falls. Perspective shifts
after the fall to capture her new viewpoint, a hallucinatory vision of the
monsters thrashing above her. A nightmare world has become even more
unstable. This qualifies as horror of the very highest order.

Part Two, How to Wrestle an Elasmosaurus

The pesky elasmosaurus from the pool in Kong's lair
proves to be a tough opponent. It quickly wraps
itself around Kong like a constrictor.

You've got a real problem if you allow the elasmosaurus
to wrap its coils around you. It'll go for the choke hold.

Unwind the elasmosaurus, grab it by the tail,
and whack it hard against the rocks.
They hate that.

Part Three, How to Dispose of a Pteranodon

Unwelcome visitor: A Pteranodon drops by unexpectedly.

If a Pteranodon pesters your guests,
simply grab it by the wing, pull it back to earth...

... and if you can't talk reason with it, break the Pteranodon's jaws,
and toss it off your balcony.

About 21 Essays

21 Essays is my cultural history blog. In 2007, I challenged myself to write 21 essays in 21 days on a single focused topic—the classic German silent film The Golem (1920).I liked that format and so I’m reviving it here as a way of exploring favorite things (movies, books, paintings, etc.) in depth.

About the Author

Lee Price is the Director of Development at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts (Philadelphia, PA). In addition, he writes a tourism/history blog called "Tour America's Treasures" and recently concluded two limited-duration blogs, "June and Art" and "Preserving a Family Collection."

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"There's something I'm finding out as I'm aging--that I am in love with the world."